Former Vatican bank head’s house searched

Naples prosecutors have searched former Vatican bank head Ettore
Gotti Tedeschi’s Piacenza home in connection with a corruption probe
into defence technology group Finmeccanica. The public prosecutors’
action is not linked to the IOR case

GIACOMO GALEAZZIvatican cityUp until two weeks ago, he had been God’s
banker and had the key to the Pope’s safe. After he was ousted from his
position as head of the Vatican Bank (IOR) Ettore Gotti Tedeschi
was dealt yet another heavy blow. This morning his house in Piacenza
and two offices in Milan were searched; and although he is not under
investigation (he is currently considered an “informed witness”), the
shadow of an inquiry which is destined to destabilise the economic and
financial establishment he has always been part of, now looms over him.
First he was representative of the Spanish giant Banco Santander in
Italy and then in 2009 he was President of the Holy See’s Institute for
Works of Religion.Naples prosecutors ordered a search of some
residences owned by Ettore Gotti Tedeschi, who was recently ousted from
the position he had been appointed to by the Vatican Secretary of State,
Tarcisio Bertone. The prosecutors said the search took place in
connection with a corruption probe
into defence technology group Finmeccanica. Gotti Tedeschi is not under
investigation and the search is not linked to his work at the IOR. Ettore
Gotti Tedeschi has held and continues to hold roles that are of primary
importance. He was President of the Institute for Works of Religion
(IOR) from 23 September 2009 to 24 May 2009. He has been head of the
Italian branch of Spain's Banco Santander (Santander Consumer Bank)
since 1993.He has been President of the Italian
infrastructure fund, F2i S.p.A since April 2009 and is currently
administrative advisor of the Deposits and Loans Fund (Italian Treasury
and banking foundations) and economic
advisor to Giulio Tremonti’s Ministry of Economy and Finance. For the
first 13 years of his career, EGT worked in the field of strategic
consultation with SEMA in Paris and Italy and McKinsey in the UK. He
then entered the word of finance as head of merchant banking for IMI and
co-founded Akros Finanziaria. In 1993 he brought Banco Santander to
Italy and as such, became administrative adviser and a member of the executive
committee of Turin’s Intesa San Paolo bank, until 2006. He has five
children (Riccardo, Corrado, Daria, Federico and Laura) and is married
to Francesca.The search was carried out to find useful clues
that could clear up certain aspects of orders received by the group and
relations between the banker and certain individuals who are under
investigation. The search was carried out in Gotti Tedeschi’s home and
in two offices belonging to him.The search was part of an international
corruption investigation into some contracts which were allegedly
awarded by companies that are part of the Finmeccanica group in Europe
and South America. The investigation was sparked by some statements made
by Valter Levitola. The search was
carried out by the Italian carabinieri’s (military police) environmental
protection squad in Rome. Gotti Tedeschi’s Piacenza home and one of his
offices in Milan are currently being searched.After the vote of no-confidence which cost him his
job at the IOR, Gotti Tedeschi received the support of a number of
figures in the fields of economics and finance, such as Carlo
Castellano, adviser to the Bank of Italy and Unicredit’s Maurizio Lauri.
They both sided with him because “never in recent history has the head
of an institution been removed from his position with such brutality.”Gotti Tedeschi’s scandalous exit which was
ratified by the Cardinal’s Commission overseeing the IOR has not ended
tensions over Vatican finances. The Vatican’s accession to the white
list of financially virtuous countries – advised by former minister
Tremonti and his advisor Gotti Tedeschi – has been compromised by the
opinions of those who fear this would limit the efficiency of the IOR.
Bertone (who controls the Holy See’s financial troika) is engaged in a
head to head fight with Nicora and Tauran over the management of Vatican
finances; a struggle which has led to the downfall of the illustrious
Gotti Tedeschi.

Vatican denies Pope's butler was 'double agent' in Vatileaks scandal

Vatican investigators began interrogating the Pope's butler on suspicion of
stealing confidential documents on Tuesday as it was claimed he had been
acting as a 'double agent' to help officials uncover others involved in the
scandal.

Mr Gabriele has been held since May 23
in a 12ft by 12ft room inside the headquarters of the Gendarmerie, the
city state's 130-strong police forcePhoto: AP

Paolo Gabriele, 46, Benedict XVI's
personal valet, has been held in custody for two weeks in a "secure
room" of the Vatican Gendarmerie on suspicion of stealing and leaking
papers which lifted the lid on bitter feuds and power games at the
highest levels of the Roman Catholic Church.

However,
in an affair which grows murkier by the day, it was suggested by
Corriere della Sera, one of Italy's leading newspapers, yesterday that
Vatican magistrates knew five months ago that he was behind the leaks
but came to a "secret pact" under which he would lead them to other
moles.

The newspaper said there was no
other way to explain why the butler took the "suicidal" decision to
keep some of the stolen documents in the Vatican apartment that he
shares with his wife and children, where they were discovered by
investigators.

The hypothesis was
denied by Federico Lombardi, the Vatican spokesman. It was "absolutely
without foundation or plausibility" he said.

The
substance of the butler's questioning would not be made public because
it was an ongoing criminal investigation, Father Lombardi said.

A trial, however, would be public, and could turn into the city state's most sensational for decades.The
valet was questioned by Vatican prosecutors in the presence of his two
lawyers as well as a Vatican judicial official known as the "promoter of
justice", as part of the process that could lead to him being charged
with "aggravated theft" and put on trial.If convicted, he could
be sent to prison for up to six years, a sentence that would have to be
served in an Italian jail, because the Vatican does not have one.Prosecutors
could also charge him with receiving stolen goods, criminal association
and stealing secrets from a head of state, crimes which carry
additional penalties of one to five years under Vatican law.Vatican
observers have speculated that should he be convicted, he might receive
a papal pardon and not have to serve any time behind bars."There's
no way they're going to give him a heavy sentence for espionage and
stealing state secrets," said Father Thomas Reese, a Vatican expert at
the Woodstock Theological Centre at Georgetown University in Washington.Mr
Gabriele has been held since May 23 in a 12ft by 12ft room inside the
headquarters of the Gendarmerie, the city state's 130-strong police
force.It is equipped with a desk and a bed and has a crucifix on the wall.The
valet, a devout Catholic who was previously seen as intensely loyal to
the Pope, is allowed to attend Mass at a nearby chapel, where he is not
handcuffed, and to read newspapers. He is served the same meals that are
eaten by Vatican gendarmes.The Vatican's de facto prime minister
– who appears to be one of the main targets of the shadowy plot – spoke
for the first time of the scandal.Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the
Vatican's secretary of state and the Pope's right-hand man, said the
theft and leaking of compromising documents seemed to be part of a
"ferocious and targeted" campaign against 85-year-old Benedict's papacy.He insisted that the Pope would not allow himself to be "intimidated" by the scandal, dubbed "Vatileaks" by the Italian media.Many
of the leaked documents appeared to be aimed at discrediting Cardinal
Bertone himself, casting in a negative light his apparent attempts to
block efforts to tackle corruption and nepotism and measures to improve
transparency within the Vatican bank.Exactly who is behind the
theft of the papers and letters remains a mystery, but there is
widespread speculation in Rome that they are at least in part an attempt
to topple Cardinal Bertone, against a background of jockeying for power
in anticipation of Benedict's death and the election of a new Pope.Vatican
investigators, including a specially-appointed commission of three
cardinals, suspect at least five other people of being part of the plot,
the Italian media claimed.

More from The Telegraph

Charles and Camilla meet the Pope

Prince Charles and Camilla meeting Pope Benedict XVI

The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall have met Pope Benedict XVI at the Vatican.

Prince Charles and his second wife, Camilla, who flew to Rome on
Sunday night, were granted a private audience with the pontiff. It was Charles's first audience at the Vatican since his divorce from the late Princess Diana. Prior to the Vatican meeting the prince made a speech on climate change to Italian MPs and business leaders. The royal couple will spend two days in Italy as part of an official tour before travelling to Germany. As they arrived at the Chamber of Deputies for the climate change
speech on Monday, the couple waved to several hundred onlookers. 'Carbon footprint'For their audience with the Pope they were greeted at the Vatican by
an honour guard of the Swiss Guards and a Vatican nobleman. The royal couple finished their tour by exchanging gifts. The Prince
said he was "touched" after the Pope presented them with an honorary
medal and drawing of the St Peter's Basilica. In return, the royal couple gave the Pope a set of plates, with paintings of plants from the Prince's Highgrove Estate. Prince Charles has attracted some criticism for hiring a private jet
for the duration of the tour, during which he will mainly focus on
climate change issues. As well as making a speech at the Chamber of Deputies, he will attend
a meeting of Italian business leaders and a reception to promote the
"slow food" movement of local sourcing and organic production.

Liberal Democrat transport spokesman Norman Baker MP said the
prince's travel arrangements would emit so much carbon it would "weaken
his case" for tackling climate change. He said the couple should have travelled by rail, or at least by scheduled flights. He said for longer - non-European - destinations it was "perfectly
proper" people travel by air, but added: "Each us has a duty to minimise
our carbon footprint". A Clarence House spokesperson confirmed the couple had hired a private jet. She said they had originally intended to fly by RAF plane, but on
Friday it had become unserviceable outside the UK, leaving them with "no
other viable option" at short notice. Charles met Pope John Paul II in 1985 when he visited Rome with Diana, Princess of Wales. Vatican protocol dictates that the prince had to meet the pontiff
alone before being joined by the duchess and then other members of the
Royal Household. Camilla was required to wear black and a matching veil. Although the meeting involved an exchange of gifts, the Vatican has
denied Prince Charles will receive a memento of Henry VIII's divorce
from Catherine of Aragon. It followed reports the pontiff was to give Charles a copy of the
1530 appeal by English peers for the annulment of Henry's marriage.